GERMANY Law and Practice Contributed by: Jörg Hofmann, Matthias Spitz and Michelle Hembury, Melchers
Social Gaming Whether a social gaming offering qualifies as a game of chance or falls outside the scope of German gam- bling regulations also needs to be assessed on a case-by-case basis. 2.2 Land-Based Gambling Betting Land-based sports betting is permitted at various points of sale operated by the state lottery companies as well as in betting shops operated by licensed pri- vate operators. As the licensing procedure for sports betting was carried out unlawfully in 2012, operators were left without licences at first. Now that the sports betting licensing process has continued and the first licences have been granted, betting operators are expected to implement further requirements to their retail business. Under the Interstate Treaty, betting shops must be separated legally, economically and organisationally from the organisation of sporting events or the sport- ing event itself. Terrestrial betting shops are restrict- ed to offering and distributing only a single betting operator’s bets. Apart from the nationwide regulations based on the Interstate Treaty, further legal corner- stones will have to be set out by the federal states. Poker Poker is generally considered to be a game of chance and, as such, is defined as a licensable product in most state casino acts and ordinances. It forms an integral part of land-based casino offerings. Under exceptional circumstances and only when adhering to strict requirements, cash poker tournaments may be offered outside licensed casinos. Bingo Bingo is classified as a form of lottery, and the regula- tions on lotteries apply accordingly. Casino Land-based casino regulation is a matter of state law and, accordingly, regulatory requirements and licens- ing differ from state to state. It will depend on the state in question as to whether licences are only available for state-owned companies or for private operators as well.
Slot Machines Slot machines outside casinos are restricted at federal level under the Trade Regulation Act and the Gaming Ordinance. In addition, the Interstate Treaty and the gaming acts/transposition acts of each state include further restrictions. These concern slot machines that may be set up in restaurants and bars, but also those set up in gaming halls. The relevant laws restrict the maximum spin amount and maximum winnings, and they define the minimum spin duration as well as the maximum number of machines that may be set up in any one gaming hall. Lotteries Lotteries are subject to a state monopoly. However, sales of state lottery products may be licensed to pri- vate companies. 3. Legislative Framework 3.1 Key Legislation The Interstate Treaty is the main legal framework for online and land-based gambling in Germany. Beyond the Interstate Treaty and the gambling acts transposing it into state law, the casino acts and casi- no ordinances of each German state constitute the main gambling legislation. These, however, only affect brick-and-mortar casinos. At federal level, retail slot-machine gambling is regu- lated under the Trade Regulation Act and the Gaming Ordinance. Horse race betting at racetracks is also regulated at federal level. The relevant law is the Race Betting and Lottery Act of 2021 ( Rennwett- und Lot- teriegesetz ), which is also relevant from a tax perspec- tive as it includes the tax base for a variety of gambling taxes, such as the lottery, sports betting, online poker and virtual slot games tax. Other federal laws impacting on gambling are: • the German Criminal Code; • the AML Act; • the Act Against Unfair Competition; • youth protection laws; and • regulations on advertising, including sweepstakes.
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